Huawei MatePad Air: Pro-stylus meets matte OLED display
Huawei combines its strongest elements in one tablet: a matte OLED display, high resolution, long battery life, and a versatile stylus. A great combination for art and entertainment.
Until recently, the Huawei Matepad 12X was my Android favorite for art. The only drawback: I missed the high-contrast OLED display that Huawei uses in other tablets.
Now, with the Matepad Air, the manufacturer presents a perfectly thought-out device. Alongside all the positive points, the workaround for using Google services remains, of course. However, this is now quick and uncomplicated.
Huawei provided me with the Matepad Air for testing purposes. It will not be in our range for the time being, but it is available from the manufacturer itself.
Matte display, bright and high-contrast
Huawei always comes up with something stylish for the casing. The Matepad Air therefore shimmers gently when light falls on it. My test device, which I received from Huawei, glitters blue. However, the tablet is also available in pink and white. The camera bump on the back blends well into the design and looks elegant.
At 5.3 millimeters thick and weighing just under 500 grams, the Matepad Air has a fitting name. It feels light and comfortable in my hands, thanks in part to its rounded edges.
Huawei has chosen the display well: 12 inches in size, OLED, matte, and with a resolution of 2800 × 1840 pixels. This results in a sharp image with high contrast and makes it immune to reflections. With a peak brightness of 1200 nits, not even direct sunlight can affect the Matepad Air. That is extremely high. For comparison, the iPad Air has only 500 nits.
And for a smooth visual experience, especially when gaming, the 144 Hertz refresh rate ensures it.
The hardware runs – at least for everyday work
The Huawei Matepad Air is powered by the Kirin T93B, Huawei's latest chip. My benchmarks were previously run via Geekbench 6. Now there is only Geekbench 7 – the numbers tend to be lower than in the old version. Therefore, I can only compare to a limited extent.
For these reasons, the new Matepad Air is likely at a greater distance from older Huawei tablets. It certainly doesn't catch up to the current tablet leader, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11, with Geekbench 7 results.
In everyday life, however, I don't notice any compromises. The Matepad Air runs smoothly; even with several apps side-by-side and parallel gaming, there are no problems. However, graphics-heavy games like «Genshin Impact» make the tablet sweat quite a bit. For a smooth gaming experience, I have to turn the graphics performance all the way down.
With a battery capacity of 10100 mAh, Huawei claims up to 16 hours of video playback is possible. In my PCMark benchmark, I reached 14.5 hours. That is more than enough for long, productive days. Afterwards, I can recharge it with up to 66 watts in just under 1.5 hours. This makes it ready for use again quickly enough.
I am positively surprised by the six built-in speakers. They sound extremely good and are not lacking in volume either. Together with the high resolution, the tablet is therefore optimally suited for Netflix and Youtube.
The two built-in cameras do what they are supposed to, but nothing more. I didn't expect more from the 12-megapixel front camera (f/2.4). The 50-megapixel main camera (f/1.8) disappoints me a little. I would therefore only use it for photographing documents.
Well-thought-out accessories with stylus and keyboard
The keyboard is included in the scope of delivery. I can attach it magnetically, and it then connects directly to the tablet via Nearlink. This type of connection comes from Huawei itself and is a reliable way to connect accessories to the tablet.
Typing runs smoothly; I don't notice any disadvantages. The keyboard feels pleasant, only the ANSI layout is confusing at first: Z and Y are swapped and the Enter key is narrower than I am used to from my ISO keyboard. However, with Huawei, I can choose between a German and an English layout when purchasing. Otherwise, thanks to function keys, the keyboard has several advantages, such as direct access to volume, brightness, and screenshots.
I have to purchase the stylus, M-Pencil Pro, separately and it costs 85 francs. That is expensive enough, but still cheaper than the Apple Pencil Pro at 112 francs. It offers the extensive advantages of an Apple Pencil plus three different pen tips, two for writing, one for drawing. The other advantages lie in pressure sensitivity, rotation detection, front pressure gestures, and the fact that I can charge it on the back of the tablet. I can customize the gestures in the settings so that I can open certain apps with them or have access to special tools when drawing.
You will find a whole range of software
The Huawei Matepad Air runs HarmonyOS 4.3 out of the box. If you want to use Google services, you can download the «Aurora Store» via the Huawei Appstore. You will automatically get the «MicroG» software. Afterwards, you can download all common apps via the Aurora Store. MicroG mimics Google Play services so that the downloaded apps run cleanly. This is no witchcraft and works well.
I find the pre-installed apps to be a strong plus. Huawei definitely packs too much pre-installed software on it, but also a few really useful things. In addition to a practical notes app, I also get GoPaint, Huawei's now widely used art app. I really enjoy drawing on the matte display with the stylus. The haptics of the screen and the lack of reflections delight me again and again.
In a nutshell
The Matepad Air is equipped with almost top-tier features
Pro
- matte, bright OLED display
- Top battery life and fast charging
- powerful sound thanks to 6 speakers
- well-thought-out accessories with NearLink keyboard and precise M-Pencil Pro
- Creative software included: GoPaint app including new animation function
Contra
- no native Google services (requires workaround via Aurora Store / MicroG)
- mediocre main camera
- Processor performance under competition
- a lot of bloatware
Ever since I learned how to hold a pen, I've been doodling away in bright colours. Thanks to my iPad, digital art has also become part of my life. That's why I love testing tablets – from the graphic design range to the regular kind. When I feel the urge to express my creativity without lugging lots of equipment, I go for the latest smartphones and start snapping away.
